Electric clothes drier



July 7, 1925. 1,544,689

J. s. SHANKS v ELECTRIC CLOTHES DRIER Filed Feb. 6, 1922 3 Sheet-Sheet l Sumo auto July 7, 1925. 1,544,689 J. S. SHANKS ELECTRIC CLOTHES DRIER Filed Feb. 6, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 2- Ll Illllllll lllllllllr .July 7, 1925. 1,544,689

J. s. SHANKS ELECTRI C CLOTHES DRIER Fild Feb. 6, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Ares W I 1,544,689 PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN S. SHANKS, OF CANTON, OHIO ASSIGNOR TO- THE CANTON CLOTHES DRYER COM- PANY, OF CANTON, OHIO, A-CORPORATION OF OHIO. I

nnno'rmc CLOTHES DRIER.

Application filed February 6, 1922. Serial No. 534,330.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LJOHN S. Snanxs, a citizenof the United States, residing at Canton, in the county of Stark and State.

of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Electric Clothes Driers, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to clothes drying cabinets containing electric heaters, and the object. of the improvement is to create a constant circulation of a large volume of uniformly heated air throughout the interior of the cabinet.

Electric heaters do not create air currents by direct or induced drafts caused by the combustion or elimination of heated gases, and difficulty has been experienced in uniformly circulating the air in all'portions of the electrically heatd clothes driers, without.

the use of ventilating fans.

l The present invention involves the use of an elongated drying cabinet having an electric heater located in or near the bottom throughout a considerable portion of its length, guide walls rising from the bottom forming air heating and circulating compartments extending and opening upward from the heating units, and an air vent pipe above the heater extending longitudinally through the air heating compartment drawing air from the lower portion of the cabinet at one end and discharging it outside the cabinet at the other end. is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, in Which- Figure 1 is a longitudinal elevation section through the middle of the drier cabinet;

Fig. 2, a plan section of the bottom of the same, omitting the electric heater, on lines IIII, Figs. 1 and 4;

Fig. 3, a plan section. of same above the vent pipe, showing the electric heater, on linesuIIIIII, Figs. 1 and 4;

Fig. 4, a. transverse elevationsection near the middle of the drier cabinet, on llnes IV-IV, Figs. 1, 2 and 3; and

Fig. 5, a fragmentary detached perspective view of one endof the air heating guiding compartments.

,Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawings.

The drier cabinet may be and preferably" is made of sheet metal in the manner setpractical embodiment of the invention walls 8 and 9, for receiving air into the bottom of the, cabinet; the bottom wall apertures 7 being located and distributed as may be desired underneath the electric heater 10 which rests upon the bottom wall .of the cabinet, and may consist in one or more units longitudinally located in the median line of the cabinet.

A plurality of air guiding wallsrising from the bottom of the cabinet on each side, ofthe heater intermediate the same and the adjacent walls 11 and 11 of the cabinet, and as shown. two guide walls 12 and 13 may be provided on each side, having their ends connected and closedby end walls 14, to form an air heating compartment 15 around the heater, and air guiding compart ments 16 and 17 on each side thereof, which" side compartments may extend around the air heating compartmentends of the heater, as shown at 17 and 17 for the outer compartment. All the air compartments are open above, so as to freely pass air upward and downward for creating a circulation of thesame in the cabinet.

A'longitudinal air vent pipe 18, preferably made of sheet metal, extends longitudinally through the air heating compartment 15 above the electric heater, which pipe is preferably inclined upward from one end of the cabinet to the other end and may be provided with a down. turned elbow 18 having its lower end opening below from near the bottom of the cabinet in the middle of the end 17 of the outer air guiding compartment. The other end 18 of the pipe extends through the other end wall of the cabinet, where it may communicat with a vent flue 19 which in turn may communicate with pipe 20 leading laterally to a chimney or the like, and for preventing the draft of the Y chimney on any back pressure there may be therein, from afiecting the normal" operation of the drier, a. number of vent holes 20' and 20" may be arranged in the under side of the pipe 20 and in the chimney collar 20. The presence of air vents in the outlet pipe also'cooperating with the air inlets in the .bottom of the drier to equalize air conditions external to the drier.

When the electric heater is in operation,

air received through the base and bottom inlet apertures 6 and 7 is heated and rises in the heating chamber 15 against and around the air vent pipe, thereby heating the same and .causing the air within it to:-

heater around the receiving end of the air .ventpipe. to form a vent chamber 22 com-.

municating with the receiving end of the pipe. A series of vent apertures 23' are provided in the secondary bottom along each side of the cabinet, through which air is drawn fromthe guide chambers 17 along the sides of the cabinet.

A plurality of longitudinal bars 24. sup-'- portedby brackets 25 at each end, of the cabinet,'ar arranged in convenient. manner for carrying various kinds of-c'lothes and the like in the upper part of the cabinet, and a transverse screen 26' is preferably mounted immediately above the airguide walls to prevent the clothes from hanging or. droppinguponthe air vent pipe and the electricheater. Electric conductors 27 may extend from the heater through the wall of the cabinet, as at 28 and thence to a switch box 29 which may be mounted for convenient access at one end of the cabinet, which is provided in one sidewith suitable doors as 30, for giving access to the dryer chamber 31. 1

When the electric'heater is in operation the airheated thereby rises upward in the heating chamber 15', an-dafter impinging.

and passing around thesides of, the vent pipe, passes. on. upward. .into the drier chamber toward the top thereof. The air displaced by the, rising'current of heated air flows downward along, the sidewalls of the cabinet, and when it reaches. the upward edges of the air guiding walls 12. ,and13.

the outer portion of the air current passes on downward between the outerv guide.wall.-

13,.through the. guiding chamber 17 formed. bythe adjacent side. wall of the cabinet, and

thereof, whence this. portion of the air is discharged from the cabinet through the.

vent. pipe.

The inner portion of the; descending air current enters the air guiding. chamber 161 between the walls 12. and 13 to. the bottom thereof, whence it is drawn. through a. series. of suction apertures. 32 provided along the" bottom of the guide walls12, intothe bot tom of the heating chamber 15;. which suc: tion. is created by the upward flow of heated. air therein.

ltwill, be understood that the combined area of the air receiving apertures 6 and 7 respectitj ely issuch that the. volume of air received from outside the cabinet is less than the volume of air which can be heated and caused to. flow upward by the electricheater, thereby creating a downward suction in the air guiding chambers 16 on each side of the heating chamber 15, similar to the downward suction created in the outwardair guiding chambers 17 by action of the air vent pipe, so that the currents of cooler air descending along each side wall of the heater is divided at the upper edge of theair guiding wall 13, and one portion thereof is discharged from the cabinet through the vent pipe while the other portion thereof-is reheated and again circulated through the cabinet with the fresh air received through the bottom apertures.

By these means a constant current of heated air is circulated uniformly through all parts of the cabinet, which may be generally in the form. of a current of hotter air rising intermediate the side walls to the top of. the chamber and two currents of cooler-5 air descending alongthe side walls to the bot F? tom of the cabinet,where the coolereurrents are divided into two portions, one of which is discharged from the cabinet through the vent pipe and the other of which isreheated and recirculated by the electric heater.

The use of a second guid'ejwall 13in each side is not essentiahbut the same is preferred to prevent an interference between theSHCr tion through the apertures into the heating chamber and the-suction from theair ing chamber with the airfvent pipe.

I claim:

1.. A drier. for. clothes andthe like, ineluding a normally closed cabinet with. air inlets and a heater in. the bottom. thereof,

means extending; over the heater for dis-.-

charging air fromthe'bottomof the cabinet.

2. A drier for clothes and the ,like, including a normally closedfcabinet with air inlets and an air heatingcompartment in the bottom thereof, meansv guiding heated air upward intermediate. the sides. of the cabinet,v means guiding cooler airdownward at the sides of the cabinet, and means guiding a portion of the cooler air into. the botisthence drawn by thev suction created. by. the heated vent. pipe. 18 to the receiving end.

tom ofthe air heating compartment.

3. A drier for clothesand the like, in.- cluding a normally. closed cabinet with air inletsand a heater in. the middle of the bottom thereof, meansguiding heated air up.- ward intermediate the sides. of" the cabinet,

means guidingcooler air downward at each side of the cab1net,..means for discharging.

air upward intermediate the sides of the cabinet, means guiding cooler air downward at the sides of the cabinet, and means guiding a portion of the cooler air into the bottom of the air heating compartment and discharging the remainder thereof from the bottom of thecabinet.

5. A drier for clothes and the like, including a normally closed cabinet with. air inlets and a heater in the botoni thereof, walls rising from the bottom of the cabinet forming an air heating compartment around the heater and air guiding compartments on each side thereof with apertures in the bottom of the walls between the air heating and guiding chambers.

6. A drier for clothes and the like, including a normally closed cabinet with air inlets and a heater in the bottom thereof, walls rising from the bottom of the cabinet forming an air heating compartment around the heater and twoair guiding compartments on each side thereof with apertures in the bottom of the walls between the heating and inner guiding chambers.

7. A drier for clothes and the like, including a normally closed cabinet with air inlets and a heater in the bottom thereof, walls rising from the bottom of the cabinet forming an air heating compartment around the heater, and an air vent pipe extending longitudinally through the heating compartment above the heater having one end opening near the bottom of the heater and the other end opening outside the cabinet.

8. A drier for clothes and the like, including a normally closed cabinet with air inlets and a heater in the bottom thereof, Walls rising from the bottom of the chamber forming an air heating compartment around the heater and air guiding compartments on each side thereof, with apertures at the bottom of the walls between the heating and guiding chambers, and an air vent pipe extending longitudinally through the air heating chamber above the heater having one end opening near the bottom of the heater of the cabinet and the other end opening outside the cabinet.

9 A drier for c-lothes'and the like, ineluding a normally closed cabinet with air inlets and a heater in the bottom thereof, means discharging air from the bottom of the cabinet, and a pipe leading from the air discharging means to a chimney or the like, there being apertures in the pipe for equalizing air conditions external to the drier.

JOHN S. SHANKS. 

